Apologies
by WiseAvenger
Summary: When the situation gets out of hand, the first instinct is to flee.


Iris ran down the deserted hallway, red hair flying behind her. Some strands of it clung to her neck. She had been running for some minutes now, looking for someone. It was important that she find him. She _had to_ find him, no matter what. If she couldn't...

She quickly repressed the thought and forced herself on. Her feet ached, but she couldn't stop now. Not when there were only a few places to check.

She turned down a hallway and stopped in front of a room marked 215. She allowed a minute to pass so she could catch her breath. Then, hands trembling, she pushed the door open.

Most of the lights inside the studio were still on, but the room was empty. There were no art students working over-time today, she noted disappointedly. She didn't know where else he could be.

Dejectedly, she left the room and made her way back down the stairs. She would have to look somewhere else – the dormitory or the library perhaps. He couldn't be far.

They were supposed to meet two hours ago in front of the dainty cafe where she worked part-time. He didn't show up, and when she asked around, no one knew where he was. She even tried calling his cellular phone but no one answered. It was unlike him not to tell anyone where he was going, and she was growing more and more worried by the minute.

Her thoughts as she ran were filled with what-ifs. It didn't help the situation, she knew, but she couldn't help it. So many things had happened in the past months that she could not deny the danger that surrounded him.

_I should try harder_, she thought to herself. _When I find him, I'll tell him the truth... surely._

Months had passed after she asked Dahlia to let her take control of the situation, to try to solve it, but nothing came out of it – except for the fact that she had grown fonder of one Phoenix Wright. She was not supposed to fall in love; all she had to do was retrieve Dahlia's necklace, but even then, she had failed.

She couldn't even help Dahlia. Now, it would seem that she wouldn't be able to help Phoenix Wright either.

A commotion at the back of the Pharmacology building drew her attention. A crowd was building even as the university police tried to keep them back. Everyone was craning their necks to see what it was all about. Those who left the growing circle walked away quickly, horror in their eyes. Iris suddenly felt light-headed. Somehow, she knew what lay beyond.

"E-excuse me," she called out to a male student who was walking away from the scene. "Wh-what happened... there?"

"Um, it's..." he buckled and unbuckled the belt on his bag. It unnerved her to watch him so. "A student was electrocuted. It's... not looking very good."

"Y-you mean..."

"Probably, I can't be too sure. I didn't take a good look at him."

_Him_. Iris gulped. Dare she ask? "Who... Who was it?" she asked, resignedly.

"Not sure, but I think his name was... Swallow?"

Iris nodded, a little shell-shocked, and the student left, shaking his head. Doug Swallow was dead, and it was surely all her fault. If she had retrieved the necklace for Dahlia, he would still be alive.

An ambulance from the local hospital arrived, lights flashing, sirens blaring. Two paramedics carrying a gurney got out of the doors. A minute passed and when they returned, they were wheeling a man back to the ambulance. He was draped with a white sheet of cloth.

The ambulance doors closed and the vehicle sped away. The students who were milling about left the scene in somber moods. They walked slowly, talking low amongst themselves.

Iris took a step back, and clenched her fists, her nails biting into her skin. Tears flowed freely down her cheeks. There was no use stopping them now. It was too late. She was too late. It was all over.

And that's when she spotted him. He had his back to the wire fence that surrounded the Pharmacology building, his mouth gaping open in shock. His dark hair was damp with the rain that had fallen several minutes ago. He looked scared – absolutely scared.

Surely she couldn't abandon him like this. This was the time when he would need her most by his side.

Then a woman walked into view. She approached him with slow, deliberate steps. When she reached him, she laid a hand on his shoulder and they conferred together, his head bowed. Iris saw her hair color – a flaming shade of red.

A sudden rush of fear seized her. It was really all over. Dahlia had come, and it was all her – Iris' – fault. She should have tried harder. Even now, she couldn't just waltz into the scene and talk to Phoenix. That would raise a lot of questions and a lot more trouble for her and Dahlia. She had let so many things happen, perhaps it was better if she just...

But she couldn't leave him hanging, not like this. She has grown to love him far too much.

_What do I do?_ She asked herself. _I should never have gone here... I shouldn't have promised... I can't keep my promises anymore... I..._

Iris slowly raised her head and saw that Phoenix Wright was looking at her direction. She took another step back. If she stayed, she would cause more harm than good. She decided, it just wouldn't do.

"I'm sorry."

She spun around and ran away.


End file.
